She doesn’t need a man or a major TV network! In Elle’s Women in Music issue, Miley Cyrus dishes on how she’s changed since leaving the Disney Channel and breaking things off with her fiance, Liam Hemsworth.

“I’m really thankful that I started on Disney,” she admits. “I got the most intense training. There’s times where I wish I could’ve just started as a new artist, but the world has kind of allowed me to do that. I feel really lucky — kid stars get all crazy and stuck in what they were, so they can’t actually become who they’re meant to be.”

She adds that being in such a serious relationship was a similar situation. “When I went through a really intense breakup — you know, I was engaged — and when I was with him or when I was on Disney, the thing that gave me the most anxiety was not knowing what to do with myself when Disney wasn’t there to carry me anymore or if I didn’t have him. And now, I’m free of both those things, and I’m fine.”

The 21-year-old also dishes to the mag about making a difference for her fans. “That gives me a big purpose,” she explains. “A reason to wake up in the morning that’s bigger than to put on my f—ing feathers and my little outfits.”